Modern slave drivers, I’ll end your evil trade

A new bill will target the human trafficking gangs plaguing Britain

The Sunday Times

Sunday August 25 2013, 1.01am, The Sunday Times

The Sunday Times

Sunday August 25 2013, 1.01am, The Sunday Times

It is scarcely believable that there is slavery in Britain, yet the harsh reality is that in 2013 there are people in this country forced to exist in appalling conditions and often against their will. The criminals who exploit, bully and threaten them often inflict violence mercilessly. They are careful to ensure their victims have no rights. Those victims are, to all intents and purposes, slaves.

The Sunday Times is playing an important role in exposing the modern slave trade. Last week’s investigation into the young Vietnamese women who are trafficked to Britain was shocking. Their plight is desperate: they are deceived into thinking they will find well-paid jobs, often only to be raped and abused, and then forced into prostitution or at best to